Game Book
EL PASO, Texas – Cam McDaniels poured in a career-high 27 points,
Youssouf Traore registered his first career double-double (12 points, 10 rebounds) while
Reese Miller (11 points, career-best seven assists) and
Augusto Cassia (nine points, nine boards) both stuffed the stat sheet to help the UTEP men's basketball team drill UIW, 79-60, in its home opener at GECU Arena at the Don Haskins Center Sunday evening.
The Miners (1-1) bolted out to their largest halftime lead against a DI opponent in two years, carrying a 17-point cushion (46-29) into the locker room against the Cardinals. UTEP never let the visitors get within single digits the rest of the way en route to picking up its first victory of the 2026-27 season.
The game was tied once (2-2) before an 11-1 run broke the contest open in favor of the Orange and Blue. The Miners shot the ball well, drilling 50.9 percent (29-57) from the floor, including a stout 37.9 percent (11-29) from 3-point range. McDaniels (4-10) and Miller (3-6) keyed the charge from distance while freshman
Isaiah Ward came off the bench to hit a pair of triples in seven minutes of action.
Leif Moeller (eight points, five boards) and
Reid Cason (six points, 3-3 FG) also were impactful.
UTEP shared things well, recording 17 assists to 10 turnovers. The Orange and Blue also had 11 steals on 15 turnovers. The Miners kept the Cardinals to 39.6 percent (21-53), including a paltry 25.9 percent (7-27) from beyond-the-arc. Darrae Goodwin paced a trio of UIW players in double figures for scoring with 16 points.
"Again, it's a new team. There's plenty of stuff we've got to get better at, but I thought there were some good things," UTEP head coach
Joe Golding said. "I thought the start was good. We guarded them really well for the first 16 minutes, and then last four minutes of the first half and then the second half, we quit guarding. We've got to be better than that. I thought offensively, we were really good in the first half. Shots were going in. Our ball movement was good, we touched paint. We went through a segment there in the second half where the ball stuck."
Moeller floated home a jumper as the shot clock wound down to get the Miners on the board first. After UIW tied the tilt, UTEP ripped off eight straight in less than two minutes to lead by eight (10-2) four minutes into the game. Traore used a pick and roll to score at the rim before back-to-back triples from Miller and McDaniels, respectively.
After UIW split a pair of free throws, McDaniels pulled up for a transition triple to nudge the run to 11-1 and afford the Orange and Blue a 10-point cushion (13-3). Miller joined him with multiple treys after Ward drove and dished it to him, but it was answered by an old-fashioned 3-point play to cut UTEP's margin to eight (16-8).
The Miners blitzed back with eight in a row. The big man Cason stole the ball and bolted up the court for the slam. Moeller then buried a triple. After Traore missed a layup, Cassia cleaned it up with a tip-in slam to make it 24-8. A 3-pointer for the visitors went through, but Traore rolled to the basket for a powerful dunk to answer immediately.
McDaniels ended a little dry spell for the home side with two free throws, and UTEP led by 16 (30-14, 5:39, 1H) as a result. A little back-and-forth was followed by another 8-0 surge by the Orange and Blue. The result was a 22-point cushion (38-16). The visitors had a little push down the stretch, but UTEP still carried a 17-point lead (46-29) into the locker room.
The two sides traded scores over the first few minutes of the second half. After the visitors cut it to 16, McDaniels went strong to the hoop for hoop and harm. UIW countered back with six straight, trimming the Miners' margin to 13 (58-45, 14:05, 2H).
UTEP halted the run with a stop and then a layup from Traore, on the find from McDaniels. The visitors kept battling to inch within 12 (60-48). After a little back-and-forth, Moeller sank a 3-pointer, but it was countered immediately by the Cardinals. Consecutive post scores, from Cassia and Cason, respectively, nudged the difference to 16 (69-53, 8:32, 2H). Cason matched a score from the visitors with a nifty driving reverse layup.
The Miners' defense ensured there would be no comeback, keeping the visitors at arm's length from that point on as they rolled to the 19-point triumph.
UTEP will play host to I-10 rival NM State in game two of the three-contest homestand at GECU Arena at the Don Haskins Center at 7 p.m. MT on Nov. 12. The contest will be streamed on MW+ (subscription required), in addition to being carried on "The Home of UTEP Basketball" 600 ESPN El Paso.
For complete coverage of UTEP men's basketball, be sure to follow the Miners on social media at @UTEPMBB (Twitter), @utepmbb (Instagram) and on Facebook @UTEPMensBasketball or visit the official home of UTEP Athletics at www.UTEPMiners.com
